Reform Child Protective Services: Sign the Petition to Improve the System

Senator Tim Kennedy and Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples-Stokes are pursuing major reforms to improve Child Protective Services in Western New York and across the state. Their CPS reform legislation aims to make the system more responsive, accountable, transparent and effective to ensure strong protections are in place to keep kids safe.

Their reforms to improve CPS would:

Provide new accountability by strengthening coordination between CPS workers, teachers, doctors and other caregivers.

Ensure CPS workers have the resources and training they need for their demanding and challenging work.

Join 33 other states in finally classifying excessive corporal punishment as abuse. This ensures stronger, deeper investigations when violent and senseless corporal punishment is reported.

Require more thorough interveiws in suspected abuse cases to ensure more accurate investigations.

Toughen the penalties for false reports of abuse and neglect which slow down the system.

Establish a felony offense for seriously endangering the welfare of a child.

Their legislation would also increase transparency to ensure gaps in the system are quickly addressed, improve the state's response to calls into the statewide abuse hotline, enhance investigations by requiring gathering of photographic evidence and bring our child protection system into the 21st century by allowing individuals to report abuse or neglect online.

These reforms were largely prompted by the tragic deaths of several Western New York children, including five-year-old Eain Brooks and 10-year-old Abdi Mohamud, which shed light on serious gaps within the system of Child Protective Services locally and statewide.

If you support CPS reform, please add your voice to this fight. Your support will be critical to ensure these bills are passed this year. Petition signatures will be delivered to legislative leaders in the Senate and Assembly, as well as the Governor, to demonstrate that New Yorkers are demanding action to protect children.